While nothing has been formally announced, sources tell Prospects Live that Major League Baseball is expected to announce the inaugural MLB Draft lottery will take place on December 6 during the MLB Winter Meetings in San Diego, California.
The newly-minted draft lottery will be the first of it’s kind for Major League Baseball after being negotiated into the new collective bargaining agreement this past winter.
The lottery will involve only the first six picks in each year’s draft. Every single team that does not qualify for the postseason will be eligible for the lottery and will have a chance at the No. 1 overall pick, with weighted odds assigned based on winning percentage. The three-worst records will have the greatest chance at securing the first overall pick, each of whom will have a 16.5 percent chance of “winning” the lottery. While unlikely, this means the worst possible outcome for the team with worst record in baseball would be the No. 7 overall pick.
As for post-2023, revenue sharing teams (nearly half of the league) are not eligible for a lottery pick more than two years in a row. Teams that are required to pay revenue sharing (the other half of the league/bigger markets) are not eligible for a lottery pick more than one year in a row.